Headbands are widely used by a variety of people, including athletes and others with long hair, with one of the purposes of the headband being to keep hair out of the wearer's field of vision. Headbands are conventionally found in a variety of styles and are popular among girls and women.
Headbands may be made of various materials. Often, the designs of the headbands have problems with slipping or creating a headache for the wearer.
Some headbands are made from rigid materials and are oblong in shape with an opening at the bottom end to slide over the head of the wearer where each end fits behind the wearer's ear to secure itself in place by pressure behind the ear. These styles can often cause the wearer discomfort as pressure is felt from the point of contact behind the ears.
Styles of headbands can include a wraparound style headband that include a portion of a circular piece of elasticized material, which is secured in place by pressure from the elastic band as the elastic constricts around the head and hair of the wearer. These bands often slide off the wearer's head because there is no gripping ability.
Alternatively, many headbands of the prior art use a piece of black elastic attached to an inflexible ribbon to provide the “stretch” on a headband. The piece of black elastic is at the base of the head. While these headbands are marketed as “no slip,” there is still a degree of slipping as the black elastic is being pulled on both sides from the pulling from the static ribbon once placed on the head. The black elastic band typically becomes stretched out after a few uses. These products also cause a “headband headache” due to lack of elasticity and ride up the back of the head and irritate behind the ears where the static ribbon ends.
Further, another popular category of headbands are headbands that are made of Lycra, fashion fabric or sweat wicking material. Such headbands tend to simply slide right off a user's head and do not remain secure for prolonged wear.
Others types of headbands have a silicone inside lining to prevent slipping. These headbands often break and snag hair.
There is a continuing unmet need for headbands that are comfortable during prolonged wear and remain secure, as well as functional and stylish, during vigorous activity.